One year on Finastride

[NorwoodClimber]

I haven't posted in a while but I have reached my 1 year mark of using Proscar (cut into fourths). I have also been using minoxidil 5% once a day for about 10 months (only on the hairline & temples). And nizoral 1% twice a week

My crown has maintained well. However my hairline and temples have continued worsen. The center front of my hairline (the "widows peak" like area) has thinned dramatically. There was no pervious thinning there before treatment. My temples have crept back quite a bit.

I am fairly disappointed overall at this point. But the treatment did do one great thing for me over this last year and that was to give me hope. I will continue use the big 3 in hopes that I will maybe gain some ground but at this point I'm not expecting much. I feel I might be a non responder.

Just an update. I hope to hear from someone who has had frontal gains after the 1 year mark on their treatment.

 

[socks]

I noticed my of my gains on finasteride during months 8 - 16... My greatest gains have been every where *but* my hairline... My hairline has improved but it never quite recovered after a bout of Telogen Effluvium due to a surgery...

My thinking is, if I can keep a healthy top then the front hairline would be a snap to get a small FUE hair transplant touch-up done...


Dont give up hope man! You might not be able to keep that hairline or temples **but**, if you can manage to hold on to the rest, for about 3-5 grand you can have a high density hair transplant done up front which should fix that problem very nicely.

If you do decide to have a hair transplant done in the future just make sure you do your research first. PM me if you want a link to an excellent web site in that regard.


Good luck man

 

[chewbaca]

what;s the website?

 

[socks]

Check your PM Chewbaca

 

[lossing my hair]

socks, can you PM with the link also. thanks

 

[socks]

sent

 

[jason566]

me too socks
was thinking about cole though for a fue up front

 

[jmoney32]

pm me too. what's a pm? i know it's a private message but where do i view it at

 

[Green Soap]

I'm on the same treatment exactly and my temples have been creeping forward, in fact, almost violently so at this point. Hairline is solidifying and looking pretty solid.

Dozens of little dark hairs all along the hairline and now I have eyelashes that my girlfriend would kill for ( I noticed them for the first time today, full and long and totally curling over. Luckily I have nice oval shaped eyes so it looks good).

I'm at one year (almost to the day) on minoxidil and 7 mos on finasteride. Straight up kicking ***.

 

[Headache]

14 months on Big 3...

And I have to admit that I'm not happy about the hairline. I have been patient with a number of sheds, but my hairline just seems to get worse. The crown looks about the same.

The hairs around my hairline just look limp and lifeless. They're slowing just flying away daily. It's strange. I'm not panicing and thinking about stopping, but I think I might not be a responder to Propecia.

By the way, I started Rogaine on my hairline 2 years ago, but I stopped because that area of my scalp was just too sensitive. It caused a lot of redness, even when I used Nizoral or T-Gel.

 

[rescue hair]

I'm in the same situation. I'm 22 and am in my 8th month of Fincar, cut into fourths. My crown has maintained, but then again I never had a problem there to begin with. The front has continued to thin, the hairline recede, and the center of my scalp is thinning now too, leaving sort of an island of my widow's peak. I'm beginning to suspect that I may not be a responder to finasteride, and that even if I was, I'd still be bald soon due to my young age. Guess I'll keep at it though. I also suspect that maybe generics are not as effective as Merck brand stuff, but it's only a suspicion. I'm not sure what to do at this point.

 

[Green Soap]

You're wrong. I'm using generics and for me they are kicking ***. They work.

I feel bad for you other guys, though. :cry:

You guys may want to start looking at other products.

 

[md2002]

Hey Socks -

how do you take your Proscar (2.5mg every 3 days), I mean how do you break it down into doses. I have been taken Propecis for about 6 years and want to cut down a bit. I am FINALLY starting on Proscar and would like to try out your dosage.

Thanks

 

[socks]

jason566 & jmoney32 PMs have been sent


md2002,

How has Finasteride been working for you these last 6yrs? Do you feel that you maintained what you had, greatly slowed it down, or less?


As far as my Finasteride dosage, it is extremely simple. 1/2 a Proscar every 3 days. All one needs is a pill cutter and the Proscar and you're good to go.

The trick is to make sure you remember to take the finasteride every 3rd day. Anyhow, my routine is based on the science that, while finasteride only has a half-life of 8hrs, the 5ar enzyme takes days to recover. One 2.5mg of Finasteride every 3rd day should be as effective as taking 1.5mg daily.

My hope is this will reduce any possibility of a drug tolerance, it will reduce my DHT levels further then what 1mg a day would, and would save a lot of money.

 

[reyn]

Socks, I started on Fincar (1/4 tablet) yesterday. I was thinking of taking it every other day but then realized that I would forget. So I decided to take 1/4 of Fincar every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. This works out to an average of 0.53 mg per day. More importantly I am more likely to remember to take the medication.

 

[md2002]

Hey Socks -

I started noticing my hair loss at about 18 yrs old, I am 31 now. I got some transplants at about 22 and 25, which is when I realized I needed more because my har was getting very thin, and lots of hairs in the shower and on my hand when showering. This is when Propecia came out, after trying alot of bullshit witch potions, I decided to give it a try as baldness runs in my family and I didn't want to go that route.

So, to answer your question. I ABSOLUTLEY think Propecia slowed down, if not STOPPED my hair loss all these years. I've been using Propecia since it hit the market ( it may even be more than 6 years ? ) There is no doubt in my mind that without it I would be bald right now!! However, the reason why I am on this board and looking for answers is, I should first say that I am satisfied with the way my hair looks right now, is because my hair seems to be thinning alot at this time. It seems I am losing more and more of my hairline all of a sudden and my hair is getting thinner.

This could be from Propecia tolerance, this could be becouse I started Nizorel, this could be because I am getting older. I don't know why it is happening but it's happening. So after all this time on Propecia I am going to change things and add to my regimen to try to maintain what I have. I figured I would start with Proscar and Nizoral 2%.

One more thing awhile ago I started taking Propecia every other day, this also may be why it started thinning out???

 

[socks]

Hey Socks -

I started noticing my hair loss at about 18 yrs old, I am 31 now. I got some transplants at about 22 and 25, which is when I realized I needed more because my har was getting very thin, and lots of hairs in the shower and on my hand when showering. This is when Propecia came out, after trying alot of bullshit witch potions, I decided to give it a try as baldness runs in my family and I didn't want to go that route.

So, to answer your question. I ABSOLUTLEY think Propecia slowed down, if not STOPPED my hair loss all these years. I've been using Propecia since it hit the market ( it may even be more than 6 years ? ) There is no doubt in my mind that without it I would be bald right now!!

Very interesting! Thank you for sharing

However, the reason why I am on this board and looking for answers is, I should first say that I am satisfied with the way my hair looks right now, is because my hair seems to be thinning alot at this time. It seems I am losing more and more of my hairline all of a sudden and my hair is getting thinner.

This could be from Propecia tolerance, this could be becouse I started Nizorel, this could be because I am getting older. I don't know why it is happening but it's happening. So after all this time on Propecia I am going to change things and add to my regimen to try to maintain what I have. I figured I would start with Proscar and Nizoral 2%.

One more thing awhile ago I started taking Propecia every other day, this also may be why it started thinning out???

I know what ya mean... It is impossible to figure out, IMO, what event or events is responsible for a change in the status quo. Addressing some of your concerns (in no particular order):

From my understanding, when you inhibit DHT your body responds by producing more androgen receptors (the site androgens like DHT bind to which then starts the process that leads to hair atrophy and death). This may or may not be a factor in long term use of drugs like Finasteride and could be compounded even further if Finasteride was to lose it efficiency due to a drug tolerance.

A counter to this may be:

1. Skipping days to reduce a drug tolerance

2. Using topical spironolactone and Retin-a. spironolactone blocks the AR sites and Retin-a, through long term use, decreases the number of ARs.

Of course being that this is just a theoretical possibility this may or may not be a relevant solution.

Nizoral is a possibility too. While it is suppose to be beneficial (has been for me) some guys feel it makes their hairloss worse. This may be due to irritation that some men may experience with Nizoral... I personally would stick with Nizoral unless you're sure it is causing irritation... In which case I would use Nizoral 1% if you're using the 2%... If you're already using the 1% you might consider dropping Nizoral all together...

Age could be another factor... It is known that as we age our hair thins due to the decrease in blood flow. I forget the study but, if I recall correctly, by age 80 a man's blood supply to his scalp is substantially decreased.

A possible counter to this might be Folligen (copper peptides). Copper peptides are suppose to help with blood supply though I'm not sure how well they work in this purpose.

I doubt skipping a day of Finasteride is the cause though. I say this because studies show it takes days for DHT levels to rise after the last dose of Finasteride (You can Click here to see how DHT is reduced after a single dose of Finasteride).


I would recommend the following:

Finasteride (either once a day or skipping days)

Nizoral 2% every 3rd day

Zix in the morning (homemade B6/Zinc topical)

Folligen in the evening


You could modify your zix to include spironolactone to address the AR sites if you like. Personally, unless you got lots of money to blow, I think the above is about the best you can do short of trying Dutasteride.

 

[md2002]

Thanks Socks!!! Good info. I haven't tried any topicals yet but don't want to start the Monix just yet. I know once I start I will have to take it forever. Like I said I am happy with the way my hair looks, just afraid that the loss is starting up again. Could be Propecia will keep doing it's job??

Anyway, I am will to try your solution but need a little clarification.

What is Zix, and how do I get it or make it??

Thanks for the help

Think that taken a quarter Proscar ( or 1.25 mg of finasteride ) would help??? I would really rather cut it down to every other day.

 

[rescue hair]

You're wrong. I'm using generics and for me they are kicking ***. They work.

I sure hope I'm wrong. Glad to hear that generics are successful for someone. Guess I just need to wait longer for results. But I'm wondering, which generic brand are you using, Green Soap? Personally, I've been on 'Finast', but recently switched to 'Fincar.'

 

[socks]

Thanks Socks!!! Good info. I haven't tried any topicals yet but don't want to start the Monix just yet. I know once I start I will have to take it forever. Like I said I am happy with the way my hair looks, just afraid that the loss is starting up again. Could be Propecia will keep doing it's job??

Glad you found the info useful

I dont blame you one bit with minoxidil. I wouldnt go that route myself but that is just my personal preference.

As far as finasteride doing it job over the long term I would like to say yes it should. However, there isnt any definitive answers that I could point to and say absolutely yes... All I can say is some guys have used the drug a long time with good results why others say that as soon as 2yrs they started to lose hair again.

Anyway, I am will to try your solution but need a little clarification.

What is Zix, and how do I get it or make it??

Zix is a very simple and cheap homemade topical. Zix is basically vitamin B6 P-5-P and Zinc Sulfate mixed with distilled water. The premise it is based on is studies showing that B6 and Zinc significantly inhibit DHT in-vitro (in-vitro means in a test tube). How exactly B6 and Zinc work in-vivo (living tissue) hasnt been clearly shown in humans. However, many men claim zix works for them as well as some who say it doesnt.

I personally use it and, while I cant say for 100% certain, I feel that it very well may have had an effect that significantly reduced the amount of hair that I shed.

The official website to zix can be found here:

Joe's webpage

Think that taken a quarter Proscar ( or 1.25 mg of finasteride ) would help??? I would really rather cut it down to every other day.

A quarter of Proscar would certainly work as good or better then 1mg of Proscar/Propecia. As far as skipping days, 1mg or 1.25mg should work as good every other day as it would every day. Again, it is a known fact that DHT stays inhibited several days after the last dose of Finasteride.